US11890860B2 - Printing apparatus - Google Patents
Printing apparatus Download PDFInfo
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- US11890860B2 US11890860B2 US17/864,952 US202217864952A US11890860B2 US 11890860 B2 US11890860 B2 US 11890860B2 US 202217864952 A US202217864952 A US 202217864952A US 11890860 B2 US11890860 B2 US 11890860B2
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- lighting area
- light sources
- lighting
- discharging head
- area
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- 238000007599 discharging Methods 0.000 claims abstract description 123
- 239000011159 matrix material Substances 0.000 claims 1
- 239000000976 ink Substances 0.000 description 62
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 description 7
- 230000007812 deficiency Effects 0.000 description 3
- 239000004744 fabric Substances 0.000 description 3
- 230000001154 acute effect Effects 0.000 description 2
- 239000003086 colorant Substances 0.000 description 2
- 230000014759 maintenance of location Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000011272 standard treatment Methods 0.000 description 2
- 238000003860 storage Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000007704 transition Effects 0.000 description 2
- 239000011248 coating agent Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000000576 coating method Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000004891 communication Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000010586 diagram Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000012423 maintenance Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000000463 material Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000011347 resin Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229920005989 resin Polymers 0.000 description 1
Images
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
- B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
- B41J11/00—Devices or arrangements of selective printing mechanisms, e.g. ink-jet printers or thermal printers, for supporting or handling copy material in sheet or web form
- B41J11/0015—Devices or arrangements of selective printing mechanisms, e.g. ink-jet printers or thermal printers, for supporting or handling copy material in sheet or web form for treating before, during or after printing or for uniform coating or laminating the copy material before or after printing
- B41J11/002—Curing or drying the ink on the copy materials, e.g. by heating or irradiating
- B41J11/0021—Curing or drying the ink on the copy materials, e.g. by heating or irradiating using irradiation
- B41J11/00214—Curing or drying the ink on the copy materials, e.g. by heating or irradiating using irradiation using UV radiation
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
- B41J—TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
- B41J11/00—Devices or arrangements of selective printing mechanisms, e.g. ink-jet printers or thermal printers, for supporting or handling copy material in sheet or web form
- B41J11/0015—Devices or arrangements of selective printing mechanisms, e.g. ink-jet printers or thermal printers, for supporting or handling copy material in sheet or web form for treating before, during or after printing or for uniform coating or laminating the copy material before or after printing
- B41J11/002—Curing or drying the ink on the copy materials, e.g. by heating or irradiating
- B41J11/0021—Curing or drying the ink on the copy materials, e.g. by heating or irradiating using irradiation
- B41J11/00218—Constructional details of the irradiation means, e.g. radiation source attached to reciprocating print head assembly or shutter means provided on the radiation source
Definitions
- the present disclosure is related to a printing apparatus having a discharging head, which may discharge ultraviolet-curable ink at a printable medium, and a lighting unit, which has light sources to cure the ink.
- a lighting unit having a plurality of light sources, e.g., LEDs, which may emit ultraviolet (UV) light at UV-curable ink discharged from a discharging head on a printable medium is known.
- the discharging head and the lighting unit may be arranged side by side on a carriage along a main scanning direction, By emitting the UV light at the ink droplets landed on the printable medium, the ink may be cured and fixed on the printable medium.
- the UV light emitted from the lighting unit may occasionally reflect off a surface of a platen or a surface of the recordable medium, and a nozzle surface of the discharging head may be irradiated with the reflected light.
- the ink inside the nozzles may be cured by the reflected light and may not be discharged correctly through the nozzles.
- the reduced illuminance may not cure the ink substantially.
- one may consider increasing a distance between the discharging head and the lighting unit so that the reflected light may not be directed to the nozzle surface.
- increasing the distance between the discharging head and the lighting unit may increase a volume of the carriage.
- the present disclosure is advantageous in that a printing apparatus, in which deficiency in discharging ink may be prevented while curability of ink is secured, without increasing a volume of a carriage, is provided.
- a printing apparatus including a discharging head configured to discharge ultraviolet-curable ink at a printable medium, a relative movable assembly configured to move the printable medium and the discharging head relatively in a predetermined direction when the discharging head discharges the ink at the printable medium, and a lighting unit including a plurality of light sources configured to emit light for curing the ink, is provided.
- the plurality of light sources includes a part of the plurality of light sources and another part of the plurality of light sources. The part of the plurality of light sources is arranged in a first lighting area, and the another part of the plurality of light sources is arranged in a second lighting area.
- a quantity of the light sources per unit area in the second lighting area is smaller than a quantity of the light sources per unit area in the first lighting area.
- a direct distance from the discharging head to the second lighting area in a direction parallel to the predetermined direction is shorter than a direct distance from the discharging head to the first lighting area in the direction parallel to the predetermined direction.
- FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a printing apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure.
- FIG. 2 is an illustrative view of a discharging head and a lighting unit mounted on a carriage of the printing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure.
- FIG. 3 is a block diagram to illustrate a configuration of the printing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure.
- FIG. 4 is a graph to illustrate distribution of illuminance with reference to a center of the lighting unit in the printing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure.
- FIG. 5 is an illustrative view of a positional relation between a closest nozzle line in the discharging head and light-emitting diode (LED) chips in the printing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure.
- FIG. 6 is an illustrative view of another positional relation between the closest nozzle line in the discharging head and the LED chips in the printing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure.
- FIG. 7 is an illustrative view of a discharging head and a lighting unit of the printing apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure.
- FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a printing apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure.
- FIG. 2 is an illustrative view of a discharging head 10 and a lighting unit 40 mounted on a carriage 3 of the printing apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure.
- directions in three (3) dimensions intersecting orthogonally to one another may be called as a vertical direction, a widthwise direction, and a front-rear direction, as indicated by bidirectionally pointing allows shown in FIG. 1 .
- the widthwise direction may also be called as a main scanning direction Ds
- the front-rear direction may also be called as a sub-scanning direction Df.
- the printing apparatus 1 may print images not only on printable media W such as sheets but also on printable media W being goods, such as resin products.
- the printing apparatus 1 in the present embodiment has a housing 2 , the carriage 3 , operation keys 4 , a display 5 , a platen 6 , and an upper cover 7 . Moreover, the printing apparatus 1 has a controller unit 19 (see FIG. 3 ), which will be described further below.
- the housing 2 may have a form of a box.
- the housing 2 has an opening 2 a on a front side thereof and an opening, which is not shown, on a rear side thereof.
- the operation keys 4 are arranged at rightward-front positions of the housing 2 .
- the display 5 is arranged at a rearward position with respect to the operation keys 4 .
- the operation keys 4 may accept operations input by a user.
- the display 5 may include, for example, a touch panel and may display predetermined types of information. A part of the display 5 may work as an operation key at a predetermined timing.
- the controller unit 19 may, based on input through the operation keys 4 or external input through a communication interface, which is not shown, perform printing and control the display 5 to display the information.
- the carriage 3 may move the printable medium W and the discharging head 10 , which will be described further below, relatively in the main scanning direction Ds when ink is discharged from the discharging head 10 at the printable medium W.
- the carriage 3 may reciprocate along the main scanning direction Ds, and the discharging head 10 may be moved in the main scanning direction Ds with respect to the printable medium W when the ink is discharged from the discharging head 10 at the printable medium W.
- the discharging head 10 and a lighting unit 40 are mounted on the carriage 3 . More specifically, the discharging head 10 including two (2) discharging heads 10 A, 10 B and the lighting unit 40 including two (2) lighting units 40 A, 40 B are mounted on the carriage 3 .
- the discharging heads 10 A, 10 B may be, for example, inkjet heads that may discharge UV-curable inks.
- Each of the lighting units 40 A, 40 B includes a plurality of LED chips DT (see FIG. 2 ), which may emit UV light.
- the inks discharged from the discharging heads 10 A, 10 B and landing on the printable medium W may be cured by the UV light emitted from the LED chips DT in the lighting units 40 A, 40 B.
- the lighting unit 40 A and the lighting unit 40 B may be in an identical configuration.
- the discharging head 10 A and the discharging head 10 B are arranged side by side along the sub-scanning direction Df.
- the discharging head 10 B may be located frontward with respect to the discharging head 10 A.
- the lighting unit 40 A and the lighting unit 40 B are arranged side by side along the sub-scanning direction Df.
- the lighting unit 40 B may be located frontward with respect to the lighting unit 40 A.
- the discharging head 10 A and the lighting unit 40 A are arranged side by side along the main scanning direction Ds.
- the lighting unit 40 A may be located rightward with respect to the discharging head 10 A.
- the discharging head 10 B and the lighting unit 40 B are arranged side by side along the main scanning direction Ds.
- the lighting unit 40 B may be located rightward with respect to the discharging head 10 B. It may be noted, however, that the arrangement of the discharging heads 10 A, 10 B and the lighting units 40 A, 40 B is merely an example and may not necessarily be limited to the arrangement described above.
- the LED chips DT in the lighting unit 40 A are in an arrangement such that a UV light-emitting range of the LED chips DT is greater than a dimension of nozzle lines NL in the sub-scanning direction Df. Therefore, the UV light may preferably reach to irradiate the ink droplets, including ink droplets discharged from one end, e.g., a frontward end, and the other end, e.g., a rearward end, of the nozzle lines NL in the sub-scanning direction Df.
- the carriage 3 may move leftward in the main scanning direction Ds.
- the discharging head 10 and the lighting unit 40 may move leftward in the printing process.
- the discharging head 10 moving leftward in the main scanning direction Ds may discharge the inks at the printable medium W, and the lighting unit 40 moving leftward in the main scanning direction Ds may irradiate the inks landed on the printable medium W with the UV light,
- the lighting unit 40 located rearward with respect to the discharging head 10 in a moving direction of the carriage 3 moving in the printing process the inks on the printing medium W may be irradiated with the UV light immediately after landing.
- the carriage 3 may move rightward in the main scanning direction Ds and return to a predetermined position in the main scanning direction Ds.
- the discharging head 10 and the lighting unit 40 may move rightward in the main scanning direction Ds.
- the discharging head 10 may move rightward in the main scanning direction Ds without discharging the inks, but the lighting unit 40 may move rightward in the main scanning direction to emit UV light to irradiate the ink discharged in the completed single pass in the printing process.
- the inks may be irradiated by the UV light substantially, and curability of the ink may be improved.
- the discharging head 10 A may discharge inks in colors of yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (K), which may be generally called as color inks
- FIG. 2 illustrates the discharging head 10 A, representing the discharging head 10 , for discharging the color inks in the present embodiment.
- a plurality of nozzle lines NL are arranged side by side spaced from one another at equal intervals along the main scanning direction Ds. Each of the nozzle lines NL may discharge one of the four colored inks and longitudinally extends in the sub-scanning direction Df.
- the nozzle lines NL in the discharging head 10 A may be, but not necessarily, arranged in an order from left to right: a nozzle line NL for discharging the yellow ink, a nozzle line NL for discharging the magenta ink, a nozzle line NL for discharging the cyan ink, and a nozzle line NL for discharging the black ink.
- the discharging head 10 B may discharge a white (W) ink and a clear (Cr) ink.
- a plurality of nozzle lines NL are arranged side by side spaced from each other along the main scanning direction Ds.
- Each of the nozzle lines NL may discharge one of the white and clear inks and longitudinally extends in the sub-scanning direction Df.
- the interval between the nozzle lines NL may or may not be equal to the interval between the nozzle lines NL in the discharging head 10 A.
- the nozzle lines NL in the discharging head 10 B may be, but not necessarily, arranged in an order from left to right: a nozzle line NL for discharging the white ink and a nozzle line NL for discharging the clear ink.
- a multicolored image may be printed on the printable medium W by discharging the inks in the six colors at the printable medium W.
- the white ink may be discharged to form a base layer in advance, and the color inks may be discharged later on the white base.
- the clear ink may be discharged to apply glossy coating over the printed image or to protect the printed image.
- the platen 6 is configured to place the printable medium W thereon.
- the platen 6 has a predetermined thickness and includes a rectangular plate elongated in, for example, the sub-scanning direction Df.
- the platen 6 is supported removably by a platen-supporting stand, which is not shown.
- the platen-supporting stand is movable between a printing position, at which an image may be printed on the printable medium W, and a removable position, at which the printable medium W may be removed from the platen 6 .
- the printable position is a position, at which the platen 6 faces the discharging head 10
- the removable position is a position, at which the platen-supporting stand is located outside the housing 2 and at which the printable medium W may be set on the platen 6 , While printing an image, the platen 6 moves in the sub-scanning direction Df; therefore, the printable medium W placed on the platen 6 may be conveyed in the sub-scanning direction Df.
- the upper cover 7 is pivotable upward by being lifted at a frontward part thereof, By pivoting the upper cover 7 upward, a cavity inside the housing 2 may be exposed and may be accessed by a user for, for example, maintenance works.
- the lighting unit 40 A has a first lighting area RK 1 and a second lighting area RK 2 .
- the first lighting area RK and the second lighting area RK 2 are arranged side by side along the main scanning direction Ds.
- the lighting unit 40 A and the discharging head 10 A aligning side by side in the main scanning direction Ds will be described as representatives of the lighting unit 40 and the discharging head 10 , respectively.
- the lighting unit 40 B and the discharging head 10 B aligning side by side in the main scanning direction Ds may be described substantially identically to the lighting unit 40 A and the discharging head 10 A, respectively.
- the second lighting area RK 2 is located leftward with respect to the first lighting area RK 1 .
- the second lighting area RK 2 is in an arrangement such that a direct distance LT 2 , which is from the discharging head 10 A to the second lighting area RK 2 , in a direction parallel to the main scanning direction Ds, is shorter than a direct distance LT 1 , which is from the discharging head 10 A to the first lighting area RK 1 , in a direction parallel to the main scanning direction Ds.
- the direct distance LT 2 is a distance from a closest nozzle line KNL in the discharging head 10 A to a leftward end of the LED chips DT closest to the discharging head 10 A among the LED chips DT in the second lighting area RK 2 in the main scanning direction Ds.
- the direct distance LT 2 is equal to a minimum distance from the closest nozzle line KNL to the leftward end of the LED chips DT in the second lighting area RK 2 and is therefore relevant to a space SP 2 between the closest nozzle line KNL and the leftward end of the LED chips DT in the second lighting area RK 2 .
- the closest nozzle line KNL is one of the nozzle lines NL in the discharging head 10 A closest to the lighting unit 40 A, which is, in the present embodiment, a most rightward nozzle line NL in the discharging head 10 A.
- a distance between a rightward end of the discharging head 10 A and the closest nozzle line KNL may be, for example, in a range from 50 to 200 mm.
- the direct distance LT 1 is a distance from the closest nozzle line KNL in the discharging head 10 A to a leftward end of the LED chips DT closest to the discharging head 10 A among the LED chips DT in the first lighting area RK 1 in the main scanning direction Ds.
- the direct distance LT 1 is equal to a minimum distance from the closest nozzle line KNL to the leftward end of the LED chips DT in the first lighting area RK 1 and is therefore relevant to a space SP 1 between the closest nozzle line KNL and the leftward end of the LED chips DT in the first lighting area RK 1 .
- each of the first lighting area RK 1 and the second lighting area RK 2 in the lighting unit 40 A a plurality of LED chips DT are arranged.
- the LED chips DT in the first lighting area RK 1 and the LED chips DT in the second lighting area RK 2 are arranged in matrixes.
- the LED chips DT are arranged along a direction parallel to the main scanning direction Ds and a direction parallel to the sub-scanning direction Df.
- a group of LED chips arranged along the sub-scanning direction Df at predetermined intervals is indicated as a chip line DL.
- a center of the first lighting area RK 1 may be left blank without arranging the LED chip DT.
- a quantity of LED chips DT per unit area in the second lighting area RK 2 is smaller than a quantity of LED chips DT per unit area in the first lighting area RK 1 .
- the second lighting area RK 2 is coarser than the first lighting area RK 1 with regard to the quantity of LED chips DT, and the first lighting area RK 1 is denser than the second lighting area RK 2 with regard to the quantity of LED chips DT.
- the LED chips DT in the first lighting area RK 1 and the second lighting area RK 2 are in an arrangement such that intervals between adjoining LED chips DT in the second lighting area RK 2 in at least one of the main scanning direction Ds and the sub-scanning direction Df are longer than intervals between adjoining LED chips DT in the first lighting area RK 1 in at least one of the main scanning direction Ds and the sub-scanning direction Df.
- an interval between the LED chips DT adjoining in the main scanning direction Ds in the first lighting area RK 1 is called as an interval k 1
- an interval between the LED chips DT adjoining in the sub-scanning direction Df in the first lighting area RK 1 is called as an interval k 2
- An interval between the LED chips DT adjoining in the main scanning direction Ds in the second lighting area RK 2 is called as an interval k 3
- an interval between the LED chips DT adjoining in the sub-scanning direction Df in the second lighting area RK 2 is called as an interval k 4 .
- the interval k 3 is longer than the interval k 1
- the interval k 4 is longer than the interval k 2 .
- Each of the intervals k 1 -k 4 may be a distance between centers of the adjoining LED chips DT.
- the printing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment includes motor driver ICs 30 , 31 , head driver ICs 32 , 36 , a conveyer motor 33 , a carriage motor 34 , lighting driver ICs 37 , 38 , an internal power source 15 , and a power receiver 16 .
- the controller unit 19 has a CPU 20 , storages including a ROM 21 , a RAM 22 , an EEPROM 23 , an HDD 24 , and an ASIC 25 .
- the CPU 20 is a controlling device in the printing apparatus 1 and is connected with the storages.
- the CPU 20 may control the driver ICs 30 - 32 , 36 - 38 , and the display 5 .
- the CPU 20 may execute predetermined programs stored in the ROM 21 to implement various functions.
- the CPU 20 may be mounted in the controller unit 19 as a single processer or may include a plurality of processors that may cooperate with one another.
- the ROM 21 may store a print-controlling program that may cause the CPU 20 to execute a printing process.
- the RAM 22 may store results of computation by the CPU 20 .
- the EEPROM 23 may store information concerning initial settings input by a user.
- the HDD 24 may store specific information.
- the specific information may be confidential information that may not be leaked outside and may include, for example, information concerning users, job data including user IDs, which may be transmitted to the printing apparatus 1 from outside and may identify senders of the jobs, user use-history information including the user IDs contained in the job data, secure job data including data concerning passwords and secure jobs, print history, and cloud setting data.
- the information concerning users may include, for example, information concerning address book, information concerning email addresses, information concerning an administrator (security manager) of the printing apparatus 1 , and information concerning network settings.
- the CPU 20 may, when the printing apparatus 1 receives the job data, store the user use-history information including the user ID contained in the job data in the HDD 24 .
- the CPU 20 may receive a print job from the user and output a printing command to the ASIC 25 according to the print-controlling program.
- the ASIC 25 may activate the drivers ICs 30 - 32 , 36 - 38 according to the printing command.
- the CPU 20 may drive the conveyer motor 33 through the motor driver IC 30 to move the platen 6 in the sub-scanning direction Df, and thereby, the printable medium W may be conveyed in the sub-scanning direction Df.
- the CPU 20 may drive the carriage motor 34 through the motor driver IC 31 to move the carriage 3 in the main scanning direction Ds.
- the CPU 20 may control the head driver ICs 32 , 36 to discharge the inks through the discharging heads 10 A, 10 B mounted on the carriage 3 to print an image of image data on the printable medium W being conveyed.
- the CPU 20 may activate the lighting driver ICs 37 , 38 to control the lighting units 40 A, 40 B to emit the UV light that may cure the inks.
- the internal power source 15 is located at a predetermined position in the housing 2 .
- the internal power source 15 enables the controller unit 19 to operate when a main power system of the printing apparatus 1 is off.
- the internal power source 15 may be, for example, a secondary battery.
- the power receiver 16 is arranged to be exposed outside the housing 2 to receive power from an external power source. When the main power system of the printing apparatus 1 is on, the power from the external power source may be supplied to the components in the printing apparatus 1 through the power receiver 16 . Meanwhile, the power from the external power source may be supplied to the internal power source 15 through the power receiver 16 regardless of the on/off condition of the main power system, and the internal power source 15 may be charged with the power from the external power source.
- FIG. 4 shows a graph illustrating illuminance distribution in the main scanning direction Ds with reference to a center of the lighting unit 40 A.
- the lighting unit 40 A has the first lighting area RK 1 and the second lighting area RK 2 which is coarser than the first lighting area RK 1 with regard to the quantity of the LED chips DT.
- a peak value of the illuminance is displaced rightward with respect to the center of the lighting unit 40 A in the main scanning direction Ds. Therefore, compared to an arrangement, in which a peak value of illuminance is located at the center of the lighting unit 40 A in the main scanning direction Ds, reflected light that may reach the nozzle surface of the discharging head 10 A may be reduced.
- FIG. 5 is an illustrative view of the positional relation between the closest nozzle line KNL in the discharging head 10 A and the LED chips DT.
- a reference sign NLR in FIG. 5 denotes an entire range in which the four nozzle lines NL are arranged.
- the closest nozzle line KNL in the discharging head 10 A and a center of the LED chips DT located at the leftward end in the main scanning direction Ds are separated by a distance L 1 .
- the LED chips DT and the platen 6 are separated by a distance H, and a nozzle surface NS of the discharging head 10 A and the platen 6 are separated by the distance H.
- the nozzle surface NS of the discharging head 10 A and the LED chips DT align on a same plane.
- a vector concerning incident light IL emitted from each LED chip DT has a horizontal component (main scanning direction component) L 2
- a vector concerning reflected light RL from the platen 6 has a horizontal component (main scanning direction component) L 3 .
- an incident angle of the incident light IL i.e., an acute angle between the incident light IL and the platen 6
- a reflection angle of the reflected light RL i.e., an acute angle between the reflected light RL and the platen 6
- the reflection angle ⁇ 2 is equal to the incident angle ⁇ 1 in principle.
- the closest nozzle line KNL is irradiated with the reflected light RL when a formula L 2 +L 3 ⁇ L 1 , or (H/tan ⁇ 1 )+(H/tan ⁇ 2 ) ⁇ L 1 , is satisfied.
- the distance between the discharging head 10 A and the LED chips DT may be increased as long as possible.
- a volume of the carriage 3 may be increased, or downsizing of the carriage 3 may be difficult.
- illuminance may be reduced by approximately 60-70%.
- the discharging head 10 A and the LED chips DT are in a positional relation such that the closest nozzle line KNL is irradiated with the reflected light RL, of which reflection angle ⁇ 2 is 20 degrees or more
- the discharging head 10 A and the LED chips DT are in a positional relation that satisfies the formula (H/tan 20°)+(H/tan 20°) ⁇ L 1
- providing the second lighting area RK 2 in the lighting unit 40 A may be suggested as a standard treatment to reduce the reflected light RL that may reach the closest nozzle line KNL.
- the illuminance may be reduced by approximately 70% when the reflection angle ⁇ 2 is smaller than 20 degrees, when the discharging head 10 A and the LED chips DT are in the positional relation such that the closest nozzle line KNL is irradiated with the reflected light RL, of which reflection angle ⁇ 2 is 20 degrees or more, providing the second lighting area RK 2 in the lighting unit 40 A may be suggested as a standard treatment to reduce the reflected light RL that may reach the closest nozzle line KNL.
- the second lighting area RK 2 in which the quantity of LED chips DT per unit area is smaller than the quantity of LED chips DT per unit area in the first lighting area RK 1 , is provided at the position closer to the discharging head 10 A in the main scanning direction Ds. Therefore, rather than distributing the illuminance evenly in the main scanning direction Ds, a coarse-dense area, consisting of a coarse area and a dense area of the illuminance, may be formed. In this arrangement, the area closer to the discharging head 10 A in the main scanning direction Ds may be provided as the coarse area, and the area farther from the discharging head 10 A in the main scanning direction Ds may be provided as the dense area.
- a maximum value, i.e., an illuminance peak, in the illuminance distribution may be located at a position farther than the center of the lighting unit 40 A from the discharging head 10 A in the main scanning direction Ds. Therefore, the reflected light RL that may reach the nozzle surface NS of the discharging head 10 A may be reduced.
- the inks in the nozzle holes may be restrained or prevented from being cured by the reflected light RL, and incorrect discharging of the inks from the discharging head 10 A may be prevented.
- transition of the illuminance in the illuminance distribution in the conveying direction of the printable medium W i.e., the sub-scanning direction Df
- transition of the illuminance in the illuminance distribution in the conveying direction of the printable medium W i.e., the sub-scanning direction Df
- the discharged gloss ink may not form streaks on the printable medium W easily.
- the dense area of the illuminance the illuminance to substantially cure the inks discharged from the discharging head 10 A may be reserved.
- the direct distance LT 1 is the minimum distance between the closest nozzle line KNL and the first lighting area RK 1
- the direct distance LT 2 is the minimum distance between the closest nozzle line KNL and the second lighting area RK 2 .
- the positional relation between the first lighting area RK 1 and the second lighting area RK 2 may be defined with reference to the closest nozzle line KNL, which may be irradiated with the reflected light RL most intensely.
- the configuration to move the printable medium W and the discharging head 10 A relatively is accomplished by the carriage 3 in the known configuration. Therefore, the discharging head 10 A may be controlled to move relatively to the printable medium W in the known method easily.
- the interval k 3 between the adjoining LED chips DT in the second lighting area RK 2 in the main scanning direction Ds is longer than the interval k 1 between the adjoining LED chips D in the first lighting area RK 1 T in the main scanning direction Ds
- the interval k 4 between the adjoining LED chips DT in the second lighting area RK 2 in the sub-scanning direction Df is longer than the interval k 2 between the adjoining LED chips DT in the first lighting area RK 1 in the sub-scanning direction Df
- FIG. 7 is an illustrative view of the discharging head 10 A and the lighting unit 40 A according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure.
- the LED chips DT are arranged in matrixes.
- the third lighting area RKt of which direct distance LTt from the discharging head 10 A is longer than the direct distance LT 1 between the first lighting area RK 1 a and the discharging head 10 A.
- the third lighting area RKt is located rightward with respect to the first lighting area RK 1 a .
- the direct distance LTt is a distance from the closest nozzle line KNL and a leftward end of the LED chips DT closest to the discharging head 10 A among the LED chips DT in the third lighting area RKt in the main scanning direction.
- the direct distance LTt is equal to a minimum distance from the closest nozzle line KNL to the leftward end of the LED chips DT in the third lighting area RKt and is therefore relevant to a space SPt between the closest nozzle line KNL and the leftward end of the LED chips DT in the third lighting area RKt.
- a center of the third lighting area RKt may be left blank without arranging the LED chip DT.
- a quantity of LED chips DT per unit area in the third lighting area RKt is smaller than a quantity of LED chips DT per unit area in the first lighting area RK 1 a and than a quantity of LED chips DT per unit area in the second lighting area RK 2 a .
- the third lighting area RKt is coarser than the first lighting area RK 1 a and than the second lighting area RX 2 a with regard to the quantity of LED chips DT, and the first lighting area RK 1 and the second lighting area RK 2 are denser than the third lighting area RKt with regard to the quantity of LED chips DT.
- the LED chips DT in the first lighting area RK 1 a , the second lighting area RK 2 a , and the third lighting area RKt are in an arrangement such that intervals between adjoining LED chips DT in the third lighting area RKt in at least one of the main scanning direction Ds and the sub-scanning direction Df are longer than intervals between adjoining LED chips DT in the first lighting area RK 1 a and in the second lighting area RK 2 a in at least one of the main scanning direction Ds and the sub-scanning direction Df.
- an interval between LED chips DT adjoining in the main scanning direction Ds in the first lighting area RK 1 a is called as an interval k 1 a
- an interval between the LED chips DT adjoining in the sub-scanning direction Df in the first lighting area RK 1 a is called as an interval k 2 a
- An interval between LED chips DT adjoining in the main scanning direction Ds in the second lighting area RK 2 a is called as an interval k 3 a
- an interval between the LED chips DT adjoining in the sub-scanning direction Df in the second lighting area RK 2 a is called as an interval k 4 a .
- an interval between the LED chips DT adjoining in the main scanning direction Ds in the third lighting area RKt is called as an interval kt 1
- an interval between the LED chips DT adjoining in the sub-scanning direction Df in the third lighting area RKt is called as an interval kt 2
- the interval k 1 a is shorter than the interval k 3 a
- the interval k 2 a is shorter than the interval k 4 a
- the interval kt 1 is shorter than the interval k 1 a
- the interval kt 2 is shorter than the interval k 2 a.
- the benefits achievable through the first embodiment may be similarly achieved. That is, the reflected light RL that may reach the nozzle surface NS of the discharging head 10 A may be reduced. Therefore, the inks in the nozzle holes may be restrained or prevented from being cured by the reflected light RL, and incorrect discharging of the inks from the discharging head 10 A may be prevented.
- transition of the illuminance in the illuminance distribution in the conveying direction of the printable medium W i.e., the sub-scanning direction Df
- transition of the illuminance in the illuminance distribution in the conveying direction of the printable medium W i.e., the sub-scanning direction Df
- the discharged gloss ink may not form streaks on the printable medium W easily.
- the dense area of the illuminance the illuminance to substantially cure the inks discharged from the discharging head 10 A may be reserved.
- a quantity of the lighting areas to be provided in the lighting unit 40 A may not necessarily be limited to two, e.g., the first lighting area RK 1 and the second lighting area RK 2 , or three, e.g., the first lighting area RK 1 a , the second lighting area RK 2 a , and the third lighting area RKt, but may be four or more.
- the longer the direct distance from the closest nozzle line KNL in the discharging head 10 A to the lighting area is, the larger the quantity of the LED chips DT in the lighting area is increased.
- the interval k 3 between the LED chips DT adjoining in the main scanning direction Ds in the second lighting area RK 2 may not necessarily be longer than the interval k 1 between the LED chips DT adjoining in the main scanning direction Ds in the first lighting area RK 1
- the interval k 4 between the LED chips DT adjoining in the sub-scanning direction Df in the second lighting area RK 2 may not necessarily be longer than the interval k 2 between the LED chips DT adjoining in the sub-scanning direction Df in the first lighting area RK 1 , as long as at least one of the interval k 3 in the main scanning direction and the interval k 4 in the sub-scanning direction Df in the second lighting area RK 2 is longer than the interval k 1 in the main scanning direction Ds and the interval k 2 in the sub-scanning direction Df in the first lighting area RKL.
- the LED chips DT may not necessarily be arranged at the even intervals in the main scanning direction Ds and the sub-scanning direction Df but may be arranged at uneven intervals.
- the discharging head 10 may not necessarily include two (2) discharging heads 10 A, 10 B but may have a single discharging head 10 alone
- the lighting unit 40 may not necessarily include two (2) lighting units 40 A, 40 B but may have a single lighting unit 40 alone
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- General Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
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- Ink Jet (AREA)
Abstract
Description
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JP2021-150964 | 2021-09-16 | ||
JP2021150964A JP2023043379A (en) | 2021-09-16 | 2021-09-16 | Printing apparatus |
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US20230082316A1 US20230082316A1 (en) | 2023-03-16 |
US11890860B2 true US11890860B2 (en) | 2024-02-06 |
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Citations (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
JP2014011195A (en) | 2012-06-27 | 2014-01-20 | Kyocera Corp | Light irradiation device and printer |
US20140240418A1 (en) * | 2013-02-26 | 2014-08-28 | Seiko Epson Corporation | Liquid discharge apparatus |
JP2015193089A (en) | 2014-03-31 | 2015-11-05 | ウシオ電機株式会社 | light source unit |
-
2021
- 2021-09-16 JP JP2021150964A patent/JP2023043379A/en active Pending
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- 2022-07-14 US US17/864,952 patent/US11890860B2/en active Active
Patent Citations (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
JP2014011195A (en) | 2012-06-27 | 2014-01-20 | Kyocera Corp | Light irradiation device and printer |
US20140240418A1 (en) * | 2013-02-26 | 2014-08-28 | Seiko Epson Corporation | Liquid discharge apparatus |
JP2015193089A (en) | 2014-03-31 | 2015-11-05 | ウシオ電機株式会社 | light source unit |
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JP2023043379A (en) | 2023-03-29 |
US20230082316A1 (en) | 2023-03-16 |
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